In Japan, for a long time, there has been an interesting tradition, thanks to which anyone can challenge their fear. The tradition is called Kimodameshi and is translated as “Test of Courage.” To pass the test, you must voluntarily go to where ghosts are rumored to be. These can be ancient cemeteries, abandoned buildings, and this must be done exclusively in the dead of night.
The Japanese considered this tradition as a fun way to pass the time and titillate their nerves, until two Japanese schoolgirls disappeared in the spring of 1996. After this, a new legend was born, which enhanced the effect of the Kimodameshi tradition.
It was early May 1996, in the midst of a national holiday called Golden Week. Two schoolgirls, natives of the city of Himi, decided to join the ranks of those who had already passed the Kimodameshi test to receive the title of two desperately brave girls.
The girls were 19 years old and their sense of adventure pushed them to visit a creepy place called Uozu - known as a haunted town. It was only an hour's drive from the city where Megumi and Narumi lived to Uozu, but preparations for this trip were in full swing long before X-Day. The girls made inquiries about this city and even found those acquaintances who had recently traveled to Uozu for exactly the same reason. ghost town.
The girls' proposed route
The girls initially chose the abandoned Tsubono Hotel as an object to visit. The building had 6 floors and people used to come here to take a break from the bustle of the city. The hotel went bankrupt in the late 80s, and the owner abandoned it because he could not find a buyer. Demolition of the building was very expensive, and since the area was already in less and less demand among tourists in those days, the authorities decided to leave the hotel to deteriorate under the influence of nature.
It goes without saying that the rumor that a facility for Kimodameshi had appeared in Uozo quickly spread to nearby cities, and young people came here from time to time to tickle their nerves.
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It took Shin almost 20 years to talk about the reasons that forced him to quit school. He says that the teacher always found some little thing that could cause a grade to be lowered, hit him over the head with a textbook for any mistake, and could give up his hands if the student forgot something at home or was momentarily distracted.
This teaching method, of course, did not contribute to the acquisition of knowledge. By the middle of elementary school, Xing, by his own admission, stopped understanding most of the school material.
At the same time, in his class, as often happens at this age, it became popular to bully peers - his classmates were constantly being bullied. Sin felt constant anxiety and feared that the same fate would soon befall him. One day, the boy’s friends did not invite him to play, and after that he did not find the strength to return to school.
Primary school student
Photo: Toru Hanai/Reuters
But Yusuke (not his real name) dropped out of school because of school lunches. Some foods gave him stomach problems, but the unfortunate boy was forced to finish everything without leaving a trace. Due to the teacher's constant reproaches, Yusuke soon became the subject of ridicule and dropped out of school. Subsequently, he stopped even going outside. “I felt guilty about not going to school. I didn’t like myself, and the people around me were unpleasant,” says the young man.
However, Japanese children refuse to go to school not only because of physical abuse from teachers and bullying from peers. Taiki, 15, says he had no obvious reason to leave school: he received awards for diligent study, played on the football team, and his teachers and classmates treated him well.
Over time, the teachers' expectations began to put pressure on me. Due to my nature, I could not share my experiences with anyone, so the stress continued to accumulate. And one day I literally burst out. Fear began to set in. My first thought in the morning was “I don’t want to go to school”
Taiki
Japanese teenager who stopped going to school due to stress
The situation did not get any better when I entered high school. According to the boy, his body seemed to be heavy from the horror that the school instilled in him. After studying for half a month, Taiki dropped out of school.
In recent decades, Japanese authorities have paid close attention to the futoko problem and have even made several attempts to solve it. The Ministry of Education is developing strategies to eradicate bullying at school, and some municipalities have decided to review the entire complex of “blacks,” as they are called because of their severity, school rules.
However, it has not yet been possible to significantly improve the situation; the number of schoolchildren who do not want to study continues to grow steadily, despite the decline in the birth rate. At the same time, some not only skip classes, but also completely isolate themselves from society, locking themselves in their room. Such voluntary hermits are called hikikomori
, they can remain isolated and dependent on relatives for decades.
Parents of futoko children often blame themselves and their parenting methods for what is happening. Some, fearing for the child’s future, even try to be tough and forcefully return him to school, thereby further traumatizing him.
As adults, futoko children often face stigmatization. Even if they were able to re-socialize and return to school, marks about the missed months remain on the school report card, and in the future this can become a serious obstacle to employment.
Amid the growing problem, several non-profit organizations have emerged in the country dedicated to helping Futoko children and their parents, and even a specialized newspaper. As an alternative to the regular school with its rigid routines, so-called “free schools” ( furi skuru)
, from English free school). They do not belong to the state, but to private individuals and NGOs. Their exact number is unknown, but, according to various estimates, it may be several hundred.
On a playground in Tokyo
Photo: Athit Perawongmetha / Reuters
The “free school” becomes a haven for downtrodden children. There is no fixed schedule or curriculum; children of all ages can attend classes. At the same time, students are free to manage their time: they can, for example, go to a math lesson, or they can read comics. Classes in such educational institutions are also different from ordinary ones.
Investigation
Two days have passed since the disappearance of the girls and the family decided to contact the police. The investigation and search for the girls were carried out in the area of the Chibuno hotel. Gradually, the search area expanded, and helicopters were brought in to examine nearby rock formations. No traces of the girls were found.
The police assumed that the girls could simply run away, which was the reason for the suspension of the investigation. But before this, two more attempts were made to conduct a thorough and large-scale search of the entire area from Himi to Uozu. But no traces of the girls were ever found. The mysterious disappearance of schoolgirls has given rise to a new legend, and now the Kimodameshi tradition has taken on an even more eerie hue.
Versions of the girls' disappearance
Since the version that the girls ran away from home was actively promoted by the police themselves, it was at the peak of popularity for a long time, but then at least the car would have been discovered or the girls would have been “spotted” in other cities.
Where did the tradition come from?
This fashion developed in Japan. Showing your legs is considered completely normal among them. Synthetic tights are prohibited in schools, so even in winter you can see a girl wearing a short skirt. One can only guess how it might not be cold in such clothes.
Experts calculate the time when this fashion appeared. Just a few decades ago, short skirts could be seen on young girls.
In the mid-1990s, singer Ayumi Hamasaki was popular among girls. The girl was born in Fukuoka. She is considered a successful singer among Asian performers. She was even given the title of “Empress of Japanese Pop”. Since 1998, she began to release many music albums, her songs were played on the players of young teenagers.
The girl won the Grand Prix at Japan Record Taishou three times, her appearance attracted fans. Her style of short dresses was especially striking. At performances she appeared in luxurious outfits, but her legs were almost completely visible. This is where the fashion for short skirts came from. Young people often list celebrities as their idols, trying to imitate them.
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Spread of fashion
In Russia, many schools have introduced uniforms. Therefore, the length of the skirts is completely controlled by the director. The clothes themselves are sewn specifically to order.
Russian girls do not fold their skirts, but initially buy short ones. They don't try to imitate the star. Most likely it's a matter of attractiveness. Girls understand that guys can be attracted to such appearance. Others are sure that their clothes are not provocative.
In schools you can hardly find girls in short skirts, but outside of school the fashion does not disappear. You can often meet such girls. Is this appearance obscene? The answer can only be found in society. It remains to be seen how fashion develops.
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Skirt type
Previously, there were no restrictions on wearing such skirts. Young girls wore special belts to keep their skirts pulled up. Therefore, she herself became shorter.
Now they are trying to regulate the situation in schools. Girls are allowed to wear skirts of a certain length. What is happening on the street? There are no hard and fast rules here; you can often see young girls in super short dresses.
On the Asian island, the attitude towards such outfits is different. They do not consider it shameful to bare their legs. Moreover, such behavior is not considered a defiant act.
Schools in Japan do not allow children to wear underwear to physical education.
The Nagasaki Prefectural Board of Education recently asked schools under its jurisdiction to consider revising their dress codes after it was revealed that most middle and high schools have rules dictating what color students' underwear can be. . Now school underwear rules are at the center of controversy again, and for an even stranger reason.
During a budget review meeting for the city of Kawasaki, Tokyo's southern neighbor, city councilor Eri Yamada raised an alarming complaint she had heard from parents of elementary school-age children. During physical education, students are required to change into their sports uniform, but when they do so, they are not allowed to wear underwear . This rule applies to both boys and girls. Since Japanese elementary schools go up to sixth grade (ages 11–12), this also means that prepubescent girls must remove their panties and bras before training.
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Not all schools now require you to remove your underwear before class, but Yamada was shocked to hear that many still require it. “Children of primary school age are at a formative age for developing ideas about sexuality. This rule has an adverse effect on them,” she said, adding that many children themselves told their parents that they did not like being told not to wear underwear.
So why do these schools insist on no underwear? For medical and hygienic reasons, they say. Elementary school kids don't shower after PE, and the "no underwear" rule was created to prevent them from spending the rest of the school day in sweaty, wet, smelly underwear.
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There is some wisdom in this, but the rationale falls apart pretty quickly since you can apply the same logic to any item of clothing. After PE, kids change out of their sweaty uniforms and back into clean, dry uniforms, so why not just tell them to bring a second set of underwear to change into after PE?
Online reaction to the no underwear rule has been overwhelmingly negative, with comments such as:
- If my kids were banned from wearing underwear at school, I would move to a different school district.
- What kind of perverts came up with all this?
- It is absolutely incredible that they have such a rule.
- Why hasn't anyone done anything yet?
In response to Yamada's call for reform, Kawasaki Superintendent of Education Mitsuru Odashima said he supported the city schools' policy but would ask the administration to reconsider whether the policy was in the best interests of children.
Schools should give advice on good health and hygiene, but this advice must be of the right kind and take into account children's feelings. Mitsuru Odashima
Japanese school uniform
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Reasons for the ban
From time to time, parents of girls raise the issue of wearing tights at least in the cold season. But the Ministry of Education opposes this every time, and there are several reasons for this:
- Traditions. In the land of the rising sun they are sensitive to their traditions. It is this version of the school uniform that has been used by more than one generation of Japanese. Therefore, many are sure that loyalty to traditions only strengthens the nation.
- Hardening. There is no central heating in Japan. Therefore, residents have to harden themselves from early childhood. The apartments here are also quite cold and the absence of tights is considered an element of the nation’s health system.
- Positive impact on the learning process. There is an opinion that the cold helps children concentrate on the educational process, as it does not allow them to relax. In such conditions, blood circulation improves, and the brain receives more oxygen and nutrients. Therefore, the Japanese are confident that if girls do not insulate their feet, their academic performance will be higher.
Measures taken
Although the age of consent in Japan is over 13 years old in various prefectures and municipalities, many schoolgirls who practice enjo-kosai are under 14 years old. Finally, in June 2017, a law was passed banning paid dates for girls under 18 in Tokyo. Agencies that provide intermediary or organizational services for enjo-kosai, as well as those who incite girls to do such things, will be fined up to one million yen, approximately equivalent to $9,000.
For the first time in Japan, a law has been passed that restricts the sexual activity of schoolgirls for money, and is also aimed at reducing the demand for such services and stopping the exploitation of girls under 18 by commercial enterprises. This legislative act so far applies only to Tokyo, but there is hope that such an experience will spread to at least part of the state’s territory.
2020
TOKYO (TR). Tokyo Metropolitan Police have arrested a former employee of a special needs institution who is suspected of repeatedly raping a ten-year-old disabled elementary school girl, the Asahi Shimbun reported (October 17).
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It is reported that between March 2 and April 29, 2021, 44-year-old Takayuki Miyamoto raped the girl several dozen times on the premises of an institution located in the Katsushika district and in his home.
According to police, the suspect filmed the process on his smartphone.
Police announced the arrest of Miyamoto on suspicion of inducing (forcing) a person to engage in sexual intercourse, indecent acts towards a child and production of child pornography.
On October 16, the pervert allegedly told investigators: “[The acts] were consensual.”
Miyamoto worked at the site for two years. The case arose in September when police were investigating another incident.
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Police later searched the suspect's home and found a USB drive containing 20 photographs of the girl.
The facility has two security cameras installed to prevent abuse of students, but Miyamoto's actions were not recorded, police said.
Numerous other students have made similar complaints and police are continuing to investigate.
“I treat the students as if they were my own children,” said the head of the institution. “I don’t know the details of the incidents, but the arrest is unforgivable. [I was] betrayed."
